DALLAS, Oct 7, 2025 — Children’s Health℠ is proud to announce that Children’s Medical Center Dallas has once again been named among the nation’s best pediatric hospitals by U.S. News & World Report in its 2025-2026 “Best Children’s Hospitals” report. As the only hospital in Dallas-Fort Worth and the surrounding region recognized across all pediatric specialties – and one of just a select few nationwide – Children’s Medical Center Dallas continues to set the standard for excellence in pediatric care.
This marks the eighth consecutive year and the 14th time since 2008 that Children’s Medical Center Dallas has earned this distinction across every specialty area, reaffirming its unwavering commitment to providing consistent, comprehensive excellence in pediatric health care.
“Earning recognition in every pediatric specialty for the eighth consecutive year by U.S. News & World Report is both an honor and a privilege,” said Christopher J. Durovich, President and Chief Executive Officer at Children’s Health. “This achievement reflects the compassion and skill of our team members and the strength of our partnership with UT Southwestern Medical Center. It underscores our unwavering mission to make life better for children — across our region today and for generations to come.”
The U.S. News & World Report “Best Children’s Hospitals” report is widely regarded as one of the most comprehensive and reliable assessments of pediatric hospitals, evaluating clinical expertise, patient outcomes and hospital resources. The report also incorporates national reputation, measured by a survey of thousands of pediatric specialists who identify health care systems they consider best equipped to provide the highest level of care for the most critically ill children, regardless of geography or financial circumstances.
“These latest rankings highlight the exceptional care provided every day by UT Southwestern and Children’s Health,” said Daniel K. Podolsky, M.D., President of UT Southwestern Medical Center. “As our two organizations look to the future, we remain committed to advancing clinical innovation and transformative science to serve the growing needs of children and their families across the Dallas-Fort Worth region.”
The 11 pediatric specialties and Children’s Medical Center Dallas’ national rankings in each area are as follows:
- Orthopedics*: No. 1
- Urology: No. 10
- Gastroenterology & GI Surgery: No. 13
- Cardiology & Heart Surgery: No. 9
- Neonatology: No. 13
- Cancer: No. 15
- Neurology & Neurosurgery: No. 14
- Nephrology**: No. 28
- Pulmonology & Lung Surgery: No. 26
- Diabetes & Endocrinology: No. 12
- Behavioral Health***
*U.S. News includes Scottish Rite for Children in its evaluation of the performance of Children’s Medical Center Dallas for Pediatric Orthopedics.
**Tie
**The nation’s top 50 Pediatric and Adolescent Behavioral Health programs did not receive a numerical ranking.
Children’s Medical Center Dallas U.S. News & World Report’s Highlights
- Recognized in all 11 pediatric specialties for the eighth consecutive year – the only children’s hospital in the region to achieve this distinction
- Ranked #2 in Texas
- Honored for the 14th time since 2008 as one of the nation’s top pediatric hospitals across all specialties
*Region defined as Dallas-Fort Worth and its surrounding communities
About U.S. News & World Report ranking methodology
To create the pediatric rankings, U.S. News & World Report gathers key clinical data from nearly 200 medical centers through a detailed survey that evaluates measures such as patient safety, infection prevention and adequacy of nurse staffing. Part of each hospital’s score is also derived from surveys of more than 15,000 pediatric specialists who are asked where they would send the sickest children in their specialty. RTI International, an independent research and consulting firm, then analyzes the data and ranks the top 50 children’s hospitals in each of the 11 pediatric specialty areas. In 2025-2026, only 85 children’s hospitals were ranked in at least one of the 11 pediatric specialties evaluated by U.S. News & World Report.
About Children’s Health
Children’s Health is the leading pediatric health care system in North Texas and has long been recognized as a leader in pediatric health. Children’s Health campuses include Children’s Medical Center Dallas, Children’s Medical Center Plano and multiple Children’s Health Specialty Centers. With its academic partner, UT Southwestern, Children’s Medical Center Dallas is consistently recognized among the nation’s best pediatric hospitals by U.S. News & World Report. Its commitment to excellence and providing outstanding care has resulted in being the only children’s hospital in the region to be honored across all pediatric specialties for eight consecutive years, including Cancer, Cardiology & Heart Surgery, Behavioral Health, Diabetes & Endocrinology, Gastroenterology & GI Surgery, Neonatology, Nephrology, Neurology & Neurosurgery, Orthopedics, Pulmonology and Urology.
In addition, Children’s Health nurses have received the Magnet® designation for the past 14 years, the highest honor for nursing excellence, and the health care system has been named a 2025 top place to work by Forbes and USA Today and one of the 150 Best Places to Work in Healthcare by Becker’s Hospital Review for 13 consecutive years. In addition, Children’s Health was named one of Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies of 2024 for its pioneering model to train physicians to treat children’s mental health.
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